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Peer Reviewed Journals
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Substantive & Trade Publications
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Popular Magazines
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Audience
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Academics, professors and students.
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Substantive: general public seeking deeper knowledge.
Trade: Professionals in a field.
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General public.
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Written by
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Scholars, experts or specialists with their credentials listed.
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Credentialed journalists, professionals and industry experts. Authors’ credentials usually listed.
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Professional writers: journalist, staff or freelance writer, not necessarily experts in the field.
Author not always listed.
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Publisher
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Academic press or professional organization.
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Nationally or internationally recognized organizations. May have a social/political perspective.
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Commercial businesses for
profit.
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Content & Tone
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Written in factual, technical and scholarly language.
Reports current and innovative research and scholarship.
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Substantive: Reports and explores current news and trends. May be formal or journalistic but is usually more sophisticated in tone.
Trade: Written in formal and technical language, often specific to an industry.
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Written in relatively simple language.
Reports on current topics and events to inform and/or entertain.
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Appearance
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Usually plain with few color illustrations; may have tables, graphs; relevant photographs. Advertisements limited to books and journals.
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Charts, graphs, photos relevant to article. May include graphic art.
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Eye‐catching and colorful with lots of paid advertisements.
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Review process & Sources
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Reviewed by other scholars prior to publication.
Bibliography / Works Cited /
References always included.
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Reviewed by professional editor employed by the publication; includes fact checking. Often identifies sources in the text.
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Reviewed by professional editor employed by the publication, minimal fact checking. Rarely
identifies sources.
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Examples
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Experimental Psychology
Journal of Adolescence
Journal of Popular Culture
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Advertising Age
Ceramics
Economist
The Atlantic Monthly
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Ebony
People
Time
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